The Hope Cycle
by Sara K M
Summary: Canon. Abigail's POV between "Snow Fall" and "What Happened to Fredrick"


The Hope Cycle

(Or How Abigail Decides James will not Marry Her)

Disclaimer: I don't own Once Upon a Time

Abigail didn't even bother trying to admire the "scenery" as their carriage made its way down the road. What was the point? It wasn't as if it would make the trip any more enjoyable. She was in a carriage with someone her father had decided she should marry. Someone other than Fredrick. The entire situation was heartbreaking. Abigail knew her father had decided there was no way to bring her Fredrick back. He had already lost too many knights on that quest as it was. Since there was no way to bring her beloved back, and she was a princess, she must marry another. Father had decided the man who killed the dragon would be suitable. Intellectually, she understood this. That's why she had agreed to marry this Prince James.

However, emotionally, the more time she spent with her knew fiancé, the more it felt like she was betraying Fredrick. After all, he wasn't even really dead! If only she could find a way to release him from the Golden Curse! The result was every time Prince James tried to talk to her, she responded annoyed and bored. If she refused to become close to Prince James, perhaps she wasn't betraying Fredrick that much.

"Isn't the view pretty, my dear?" James asked, obviously trying to make conversation again.

Honestly, Abigail didn't care at all about the view! "I've seen better," she replied, bored again. Couldn't he see she really didn't want to bother with this? Just then, there was a loud thump as the carriage ran into something.

It turned out the carriage had run into a fat log that had been stuck in the middle of the road. Someone was actually trying to steal from them. It was a little nerve-racking, after all sometimes thieves did get violent. However, Prince James went after the thief. After the thief escaped, he returned to the carriage. As terrible as it was, a little bit of hope appeared in Abigail's heart. Even though Prince James seemed to be able to kill dragons, it appeared he didn't do so well with ordinary thieves. Perhaps when they arrived at the engagement party at King George's Castle, she could discreetly tell her father James had been bested by an ordinary thief. Maybe her father would then realize James wasn't as good as he had originally thought. Could there really be a chance of getting out of this horrible engagement?

Unfortunately, the thought was quickly discarded as Prince James explained he would continue on foot in the woods to search for and capture the thief. Considering he seemed to be pretty confident he would catch the thief _this time_ Abigail supposed her conversation with her father would have to wait. Still, there was one good point in this whole situation. Since Prince James believed it may take a while to capture the thief and retrieve the stolen items, he suggested she and the drivers continue on without him. When he was finished, he would go back to King George's Castle himself and meet them there. At least Abigail would have to be around James any more than she had to.

When they arrived at the Castle, King George and her father greeted them all warmly. "I'm so glad you're here for this celebration. Isn't wonderful that our kingdoms will be joining together through your marriage?" King George asked excitedly. Abigail nodded politely but felt like screaming at him. Didn't he realize the torture this "marriage" was going to be for her? Obviously not. The only thing King George recognized was that this "joining through marriage" was going to make him rich because of all of her father's gold. He had no idea what a price that gold had. Riches meant nothing if it cost you your beloved.

Her father, however, knew what she was thinking and softly shook his head. She understood. While her father felt sorry for her, he also wanted Abigail to except the fact that Fredrick was gone.

"So," King George continued, "Where is my _son_? Isn't he with you?" He emphasized the word son for some reason. It was as if it meant something specific to him, although Abigail couldn't for the life of her figure out what it might mean. Still, regardless of her plans to tell of James failed attempt with the thief, Abigail knew she needed to give him the benefit of the doubt. He did say he would return. "We ran into some trouble on the way. Someone attempted to rob our carriage. Prince James said he was going to deal with the thief and then meet us here."

King George nodded pleasantly…and seemed relieved? Why did King George seem to doubt his son would return? Was Prince James not as trustworthy as he appeared, after all? It was something she would have look for. A little bit of hope reemerged in Abigail's heart. Perhaps there might still be a way out of this agony of an engagement. In the mean time, she decided she may as well sample the food. Despite her problems with this engagement, Abigail knew she had to appear civil at the party.

Later that night Abigail was still snacking on food and wine that seemed to have no taste. It was a good thing most of the guests were enjoying themselves, because she certainly wasn't. Still, at least Prince James hadn't arrived yet. In the meantime, she was able to spend time in the company of her own personal knights. These men were the only friends she had now. Sadly, her best friends, which had been Fredrick's best friends as well, had perished in Lake Nostos. Still, these men had known Fredrick, at least, although they obviously agreed with her father about this engagement.

Suddenly the music changed. Trumpets sounded and drums rolled, "Ladies and Gentlemen the Crown Prince James!" Everyone in the room began to clap…and clap…and clap. Despite the fact that Abigail was anything but happy to see him, she dutifully clapped as well. After all, even though her personal knights were more sympatric to her circumstances, they still believed she should move on. Too bad she couldn't get her heart to move on.

Several minutes later, the guests finally calmed down and continued enjoying the party. Oh no. Prince James was approaching her. Does this mean he was going to try to make conversation with her again like he tried to in the carriage? Or worse, what if he asked her to dance? Abigail hadn't dance with anyone since Fredrick except her father. Picturing herself holding her new fiancé's hands as they moved together…how could she do that? It would be even worse than the betrayal she felt for simply having a new fiancé or for the conversations James tried to force on her. It would be like driving Fredrick's sword through her heart.

As James stepped in front of her, she noticed he didn't really look his best. It was probably to be expected after chasing a thief through the woods. Still, she had _never_ seen a prince not appear his best at a party. It surprised her and she told Prince James as much. After he walked away, obviously a little angry, she sighed. Maybe she had been a bit hard on him, but the very idea of having to spend time with him at this party…especially dancing…she just couldn't do it. If she continued to find things wrong with Prince James, she hoped he would keep his distance tonight.  
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A week later, the horrible engagement party continued. Abigail seemed to be having good luck keeping her distance from James by angering him. Sometimes she angered him on purpose, as she did on the first night of the engagement party. That way, she wouldn't have to do things with him that would betray Fredrick more than she already had. Other times, James did or said things that really bothered her. No matter how hard James tried to be nice to her, he would never measure up to her wonderful Fredrick. It irritated her that he was even trying.

"Did you enjoy the show tonight?" Prince James asked cheerfully. Tonight there had been a theater performance instead of a dance to "celebrate" the engagement. Abigail sighed. She was going to have to marry this man eventually, whether she liked it or not. It was her duty as a princess. But, no she had not enjoyed the show at all. In some ways, as hard as the dance had been, it was easier than tonight had been. Abigail had dreaded sharing the intimacy of a dance with Prince James. But a theater performance was one of Fredrick's favorite pastimes, outside of fencing. The first time they appeared as a couple, it was for the theater. If she closed her eyes, she could still see Fredrick next to her, laughing and enjoying himself. There was no way she could enjoy the theater without him, much less with the man who was to replace her Fredrick.

She looked around at the rest of the guests, laughing having a great time. If only it were that easy for her. "Maybe I'll just sample the food again," she decided, finally. She really did have to try to be civil. It was what her father expected of her.

"Okay," Prince James replied. "Would you like me to get you something?" He was being very cheerful tonight. She had a feeling he was going out of his way to be nice to her, so they could get along better. There was a part of her that wanted to shove something in his face for that. After all, she had to keep her distance from him. She didn't want to "get along better." But she knew what her father expected her to do. Besides, she didn't really feel angry tonight. She just felt depressed, being at a theater show without Fredrick. "Whatever," she told Prince James. He could do anything he wanted to do. It didn't really matter.

However, when Prince James returned, he handed her a tart, a small pastry, and some type of melon. All wrong! She hated heavy food, so the pastry was no good. She didn't know what in the enchanted forest was in that tart, but it didn't look appetizing. And Abigail didn't really like melons. "What's that!" she demanded. "I'll have to get my own food! I should have known better than to trust you could do anything right!" This was a perfect example of Prince James irritating her even when he was trying to be nice. Fredrick always knew exactly what she wanted to eat. She had trusted Fredrick with everything: her life, her heart, her dreams, her snack food, and his ability to make her laugh, especially at a theater show. If she couldn't trust Prince James with simple things like snack food, how was she going to trust him with the bigger things? This marriage was never going to work out. Unfortunately, he seemed to really impress her father. King Midas thought Prince James was extremely honorable, brave, kind, and trustworthy, all the traits he wanted Abigail's husband to have. There was no way to get out of this. Abigail's hope was shattering.

It was a night of feasting, but for some reason Prince James was not present. Some of her knights had talked with King George's knights, and there was talk that he might actually be in love with someone else. For the first time in weeks, Abigail's hope soared. Could Prince James possibly be considering calling off the wedding? Or was this just wishful thinking on her part? As she continued to munch on the delicious food ( which _was_ delicious as she had chosen her own helping), Abigail shrugged. Whatever the reason he was absent, at least she didn't have to worry about Prince James trying to converse with her again. Out of the corner of her eye, she noticed King George leaving the dining hall as well. He was probably going to give his son a good-talking-to. Abigail knew how important this marriage was to King George. He smelled their kingdoms gold. There was a time she had wondered if Prince James felt the same as his father, but now she didn't think so. Especially if he was contemplating of _not_ marrying her, after all. Still, if they did decide not to marry, she and James would have to watch out for King George. He could be a problem.  
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During the last week, Abigail returned to her father's castle to pack for her wedding and honeymoon. She shuttered at the thought. Despite her hope that Prince James may cancel the wedding, everything was continuing as planned so far. Would she really have to be this man's wife? Still, reports to from her knights persisted that they heard Prince James was extremely reluctant about the marriage. Maybe it would work out. Could she really hope?

As Abigail took a break to stroll through her father's gardens, one of her knights, William approached her. "I have some information you'll be interested in," he told her, softly. "James _is_ in love with someone else. He wrote a letter to Snow White, asking her to find him and run away together. I don't think he'll ever go through with your wedding."

Abigail's eyes lit up. "Thank you William!" Her hope was restored! She wouldn't have to betray her Fredrick after all! And since she no longer saw James as a replacement for Fredrick, perhaps they could be friends? After all, James needed help getting away from King George. He was, as she had thought before, a problem. Not only that but, from what Abigail understood about Snow White, she was already on the run from Queen Regina. James may need help locating her.

"Okay William," she explained, just as softly. "This is what we are going to do. Proceed as planned until the day of the wedding. We don't want anyone, especially King George, to know what is amiss. When we get to King George's castle, we will find James first, and offer to help him. Are you with me?"

William nodded. "I am your knight, your highness. I do what you bid." He didn't mention what they both knew as well. William remembered how happy she had been with Fredrick. He was one of the last of the knights that still knew Fredrick. The others had all been replaced them after losing them to Lake Nostos.

It was the day of the wedding, or should have been anyway, if it wasn't for the fact that Abigail knew it would never be. That made it a wonderful day. The big smile on her face as she greeted King George was finally genuine, although for a different reason than he believed, "It is an honor to have you join my family," he said as he helped her out of the carriage.

As soon as King George disappeared she and her two knights set out to look for James. When her knights found him, they bound him up to take him to their princess, as she as them to do. If King George happened to catch them, they would need to make it look like she and her knights were on his side. Then they delivered James to her.

"Abigail?" he asked. "What are you doing here?"

"I wanted to get my hands on you before your father ripped you to shreds"…..

Continued on "Whatever Happened to Fredrick"


End file.
